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Flawed Reasoning

By Patricia Pitkus Bainbridge

Regardless of whether you support or oppose the death penalty for convicted criminals, you have to wonder why so many people who work so hard to outlaw capital punishment, have little or no regard for those innocent human beings who are killed by abortion. In fact, many who strive to enact laws eliminating the death penalty actually work to keep abortion legal.

Recently, in Illinois (where I reside), two pro-abortion politicians, Rep. Karen Yarbrough (D-Maywood) and Sen. Kwame Raoul (D-Chicago) were the chief sponsors of Senate Bill 3539 repealing the state's provision for capital punishment. The bill passed in January and Governor Pat Quinn signed it on March 9, 2011 making Illinois the 16th state to ban capital punishment.

Yarbrough was quoted as saying, "death is an absolute penalty. Once imposed, there is no second chance, no reversal and no way to correct a mistake." Raoul commented "There's no greater impact that you can have than to do something that will save a life."

Obviously, what Yarbrough and Raoul said is true. My question, however, is why are they so blind to the same truth about abortion? Embryology clearly teaches that the result of fertilization is a distinct human being. Therefore, every abortion takes a human life. Once the abortion is committed, there is "no second chance, no reversal and no way to correct [the] mistake." Why do Yarbrough and Raoul oppose attempts to "save a life" when that life resides in her mother's womb?

Quinn told the Chicago Tribune, "I think it's the right and just thing to abolish the death penalty." One would think Quinn, who describes himself as "Catholic," would also think "it's the right and just thing to abolish" abortion.

Sadly, he sees only the 12 executions in Illinois since 1976 as wrong. The 1,771,269 abortions committed in Illinois during that same time are acceptable to him. In his mind, 12 executions are wrong, but nearly 1.2 million abortions are right. His conclusion is nonsensical to any clear thinking person.

As we have come to expect, someone from the Hollywood elite felt it necessary to weigh in on Quinn's action. "Catholic" Mike Farrell, best known for playing M*A*S*H surgeon B.J. Hunnicut, praised Quinn and told the AP: "This is a very significant action on the governor's part." Farrell is president of the board of directors of Death Penalty Focus in California and has been "honored" as being a "champion for choice" for his abortion advocacy. He refers to himself as "a human rights activist." If only he were honest with himself and with us: a human rights activist cares for all humans, not just ones already born.

Just like Quinn, Yarbrough, Raoul, and many pro-abortion death penalty abolitionists, Farrell exudes flawed reasoning.

It is simply illogical??as well as immoral??to oppose capital punishment while advocating for the so-called right to kill pre-born human beings.